3 Boys Sentenced To Prison In Fatal Shooting Of Taxi Driver In Somerset County

FRANKLIN, NJ — Three 13- and 14-year-old boys were sentenced to prison in connection with the fatal shooting of a taxi driver during a planned robbery on May 11, said authorities on Monday.

Three juveniles were sentenced by Judge Christopher A. Edwards to 11, 8, and 4 years in connection with the homicide of Kofi Addo, 57, of North Brunswick, which occurred in Franklin Township.

On May 11, 2023, at around 9:56 p.m., a 911 call reported a shooting in the area of Rose Street and Sydney Place in the Somerset section.

Franklin Township Police Officers encountered Addo suffering from a gunshot wound.

Detectives from the Franklin Township Police Department along with the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crimes Unit, the Crime Scene Investigation Unit, the Somerset County Sheriff’s Office K-9 Unit and the Warren Township Police K-9 Unit came to the scene to conduct the investigation.

Three male juveniles, ages 14, 13, and 13, were identified as being involved in the robbery and homicide shooting of Addo.

The juveniles intended to rob Addo when one of them fired a shot killing the victim as he was operating the taxi, said authorities.

Following the shooting, the juveniles fled from the area on foot.

• Juvenile #1 (age 14) Somerset, was sentenced to 11 years for first-degree murder, first-degree robbery, second-degree possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose, and second-degree unlawful possession of a handgun
• Juvenile #2 (age 13) New Brunswick, was sentenced to 8 years for first-degree felony murder and first-degree robbery
• Juvenile #3 (age 13) Somerset, was sentenced to 4 years for first-degree robbery

The juveniles could not be prosecuted as adults because they were under the age of 15. There are no mandatory minimum terms of incarceration for juvenile offenders.

Somerset County Prosecutor John P. McDonald commended all the law enforcement agencies that helped the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office and the Franklin Township Police Department in this investigation including the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office, the Middlesex County SWAT team, the New Brunswick Police Department, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Franklin Resident Office.

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